The villages of Arcumeggia and Boarezzo are timeless: lost utopias whose artworks, though increasingly elusive, have left a significant and indelible impression and can still be appreciated on a daily basis.
In 1956, Manlio Raffo, then president of the Provincial Tourism Office, envisioned the concept of "giving voice" to the painters, inviting them to paint the façades of a number of dwellings in Arcumeggia, thus realizing one of the most important "painted towns" in all of Italy. The first to join the initiative was the Varese-born artist Giuseppe Montanari, followed by Morelli, Funi, Usellini and Tomea from Milan, while Franco Gentilini, who was among the preferred artists of Piero Chiara, to the point that his paintings were often chosen for the covers of his novels, declined the invitation.
In those times, when something was decided upon, the effort was made and the project was carried out. Arcumeggia was thus soon transformed into an artistic centre renowned throughout Italy, becoming the subject of articles and television documentaries, and was increasingly frequented by international movie stars and celebrities.
In Boarezzo, on the other hand, a total of sixteen artists depicted the town's ancient crafts and rural life over the years, upon painted panels affixed to the walls of the town's dwellings. Here, in the serenity of Valganna, the grand hotel of the Belle Époque highlights how the Varese area was a popular tourist destination for visitors from both Italy and abroad.